Wednesday, December 17, 2003

Negotiating with Spain

The aim is for the nationalists and forces favouring self-determination to join together and stand in the March elections

Eider Goenaga BERGARA (Gipuzkoa)

Yesterday morning the Basque nationalist left proposed that a unified electoral list be formed "from among the nationalists and forces in favour of self-determination" to stand in the Spanish general elections scheduled for March, in order to negotiate on the Basque Country's behalf with the Spanish State. The proposal was made in Bergara at the "Olaso Dorrea" house, once the home of Telesforo Monzon, by present and past members of the Basque nationalist left: Arantxa Arruti, Jose Luis Elkoro, Arnaldo Otegi, Rafa Diez, Jon Idigoras, Koldo Ormaetxea, Pernando Barrena, Emilie Laplacette and Xabi Larralde.

What the Basque nationalist left wants to do is draw up a single electoral list "that would represent the Basque Country before the Spanish State", and it has called on political, social and trade union organisations to work towards this. The aim of the candidates in the electoral list "would be to achieve the recognition of the Basque Country through a process of relations and negotiations with Spain." The day before yesterday they announced that they would be putting forward a proposal to present a unified electoral list for the March elections and this created heightened expectations, because the announcement was to be made at the house of Telesforo Monzon, who at one time made the same proposal. He was a Minister in the Basque Government of Jose Antonio Agirre [in 1936] and was one of the founders of HB, the main political group of the Basque nationalist left.